many of the issues and challenges that really affect americans. that's something that starts at home. the things that we can affect in congress, including the senate, is a spending trajectory. where are we going as a nation? when you're borrowing 42 cents on the dollar to spend it, you're probably on the wrong track. when you have a $16 trillion debt, you're probably on the wrong track. when your entitlement reform is so far removed from the conversation, when spending reform is so far removed from the conversation, you're definitively definitely on the wrong track. if we are to continue to grow our economy we're going to have to look at pro-growth principles and make sure that that is what undergirds the future of america. that's why you've heard so much conversation about raising taxes. you raise taxes on the top 2% and you almost overnight, within the first 12 months, eliminate about 700,000 new jobs. you tack that on top of the regulatory reform, you're talking another 800,000 jobs "lost in america." so that's 1.5 million more

americans out of work on top of 23 million americans. that's not the right direction. so my objective would start with a conversation of tax reform and spending control. >> \[inaudible] >> i would think that most americans are members of the tea party principally. we believe in limited government. we believe in lower taxes. we believe in keeping the government out of your pockets. if you believe in freekts, -- free markets, those are the basic tenets of the tea party. i would hope we all believe in that. that would be a decisive yes. >> \[inaudible] >> you look at his scorecard with the heritage action.

he was a 98 and i was closing in on i think it was a 090. there was a couple that separated us, maybe some of the more well-known votes. other than that, i'm not quite sure where we disagree. i would think philosophically we're on the same page and hopefully we'll continue to work together. i look forward to hearing more from the senator. >> last question. >> \[inaudible] >> that's a great question. you know, i think if john was here with me today he would say, tim, don't forget, it's not about growing up in life, it's about moving forward. and we define that differently. some see the senate as a move up, and i certainly do as well in a way. but i'm hoping that the message that the good lord's placed in my heart gets a shot and a leap forward, that we'll have the

opportunity to let the message of real hope and opportunity resonate in places where it hasn't been before. and so i hope what john would say to me is celebrate for about 24 hours and get back to work. thank y'all very much. \[applause] >> later in the week senator demint gave his farewell speech from the senate floor. he's retiring in january to become president of the heritage foundation. this is about 20 minutes. >> thank you, mr. president. i would like to give what i think we call here my farewell

address. we spent a lot of time in the office writing out a long speech, and once i read it i realized it really is more emotional than i thought, and we've set that speech aside. last night i made myself a lot of notes of what i wanted to say, and then i realized this morning that was really just trying to get the last word in on a lot of the politics we've been discussing. so i set that aside and just decided to speak from my heart for a few minutes. certainly this is much more emotional than as i thought. and as i look around this room the realization that i'm standing here on the senate floor for the last time is a loss to digest and it makes me appreciative of the privilege we've all been given by the american people, and particularly those who have come before us, who have given their lives for us to have the

opportunity to settle our differences in a civil and democratic way. so this is a great opportunity and a privilege to just share a few thoughts before i go on to the next phase of my life. i first have to give my particular thanks to my wife, debbie, who for the last 15 years has spent many days and nights alone as i have tried to come up here and change things in washington. she's often reminded me or questioned how i thought i could change the world, when i couldn't even mow the grass. but she has been a supporter and certainly so important, as i left my children who were still in school and i began serving in the house, kept them on the right track. and i particularly want to thank them. all of you who served here know that when we sign up for public life we also sign our families

up for public life. in a lot of ways it makes their lives much more difficult. so i want to thank my children, my wife, debbie, and family for putting up with this and being such a support. i also have to thank the people of south carolina who have entrusted me with this job in the senate for the last eight years and in the house six years before that. all of you know who served for your states. as you've traveled around and met people, toured businesses and spoken to groups, it really creates a deep love and appreciation for people back home. i look at what we're making in south carolina in these small businesses. you drive by not knowing anything is there, and you go in and find that they're making things and shipping things all over the world. it just makes you very proud of what we're doing in south

carolina, and i know all of you feel the same way about your states. i'm very appreciative of the people of south carolina who have given me this opportunity. very grateful to my colleagues who have often scrapped with on a lot of issues. i appreciate their patience on both sides. i think i can leave here claiming to have good friends who are democrats and republicans. i'm particularly grateful for a lot of the new senators, some who are sitting here today, who i've had the opportunity working with their folks in their states and all around the country, to elect some new people to the senate that are bringing the right ideas and some new voices to those principles that we know have made our country successful. and so i feel like as i leave the senate that we are leaving it better than we found it and that our focus now, despite the difficult challenges, is really on america and how we turn

america around. i should spend a lot of time and most of my time on thanking my staff. i have to say that my greatest inspirations have come from the staff that i've had the opportunity to serve with in the house and the senate. as all of you know who are serving here in the senate, this country is being run by people in their 20's and 30's who get us so busy that they're having to follow us to meetings to tell us where we're going and what we'll be talking about. but it's incredible to see that these young people, particularly those that i've served with, have such a passion for our country and freedom, and they're willing to put it all on the baseline to make a difference here -- on the line to make a difference here. they feel like my family, but it's encouraging to see them move to other offices and taking their ideas and that

courage to other places on the hill. i want to add my thanks to all the hill staff, you folks sitting around the front here and those who have worked with us. i know sometimes we've pressed the envelope a little bit on things that we were trying to get done, and i've seen a lot of very intelligent, active and engaged staff all across the hill, both democrat and republican, and i'm very thankful for what you do. about 15 years ago i started campaigning for the house. i had never run for a public office. at that time i believed -- and i think it still holds true today -- that there were normal people like me and then there were politicians. i was a businessman. i had ha small business for about 15 years -- a small business for about 15 years. i had four children, was active in my church, in the community, and i had begun to see that well-motivated, well-intended

government policies would make it harder for us to do the things at the community level that we know actually worked. i'vehat's really what always been about here. it really was not about politics. i've had really no strong political affiliation before i decided to run for office. but i saw ideas from the time i was a young person, ideas that worked. and i actually saw this statement the other day that i'd like to read, because it reflects what i think a lot of us know works in our country. and this is one thing i will try to read today. i do not choose to be a common man. it is my right to be uncommon. if i can seek opportunity, not security, i want to take the

calculated risk to dream and to build, to fail and to succeed. i refuse to barter incentive for dole. i prefer the challenges of life for guaranteed security. the thrill of fulfillment for the state of calm utopia. i will not trade freedom for beneficence nor my dignity for a handout. i will never could youer before any master save my -- cower before any master save my god. it is my heritage to stand erect, proud and unafraid, to think and act for myself. enjoy the benefit of my creations. to face the whole world boldly and say i am a free american. i've seen this on a plaque called "the american creed." in south carolina, at least,

we've adopted this as what we call the republican creed. but it's really not a republican idea or a political idea, it's an american idea. and the ideas in this state are ideas that we all know work and ideas that we would hope for our children and everyone around us. we know that there are people all around us who are having difficulty. but this idea of helping them to become independent, self- sufficient, responsible, creates the dignity and fulfillment in their life that we know we want for all americans. this is not for a small few. this is an american idea and it's an idea that i know has worked in my life and i've seen it work all around me. and that's what i'd like to talk about for just a second today. it's not the political ideas, but ideas that we can look back through history and all around

us today and point to them and say that's working. i think if we did that more here in the political sphere we might could find a lot more consensus. as we look around the country today, we can see a lot of things that are working. sometimes we couch them in our political rhetoric, but i can guarantee you they're not being done for political reasons at the state level, they're being done because they work and that they have to get things to work at the state level. we saw last week the state of michigan adopted a new law that gave workers the freedom not to join a union. now, they didn't do that because it was politically expedient or that they thought it was a good idea, because it actually is probably going to get a lot of the politicians in hot water in michigan.

but what they did is looked at 23 other states who had adopted the same idea and saw that they were attracting businesses and creating jobs, and these states without raising taxes had more revenue to build schools and roads and hospitals. it was just an idea that worked. it's not a political idea to give people the freedom not to join a union, it's an american idea and it's an idea that works. we can look around the country today and again, we make these things political and give them labels that are good or bad, depending on, i guess, which party you're in. but we know a number of states have been real innovative and creative with what they're doing in education. we see what they've done in florida to create more choices. in louisiana particularly. forced by hurricane katrina to start a new system, in effect, and they see that more choices

and students for parents to choose are helping low-income at-risk kids, minority kids. we can see it working. and it's not political. it's an american idea to give parents more choices to put their children in an environment that they can succeed. it's an idea that works. we can look around the country at states that try to create a more business-friendly environment, not because they're for businesses or for any political reason or they're for special interests, but they know the only way to get jobs and prosperity and create opportunity is to create an environment where businesses can thrive. we make it political here. and we ask our constituents to make choices between employers and employees. but states like texas have

created a business-friendly environment with lower taxes and less regulation. they've passed some laws that reduce the risk of just frivolous lawsuits. and what they've seen is businesses moving to their state. they've seen jobs and opportunity created not for the top 2%, but expanding a middle class, creating more opportunities and more tax revenues to do the things at the state government level that we all want for everyone that lives there. this is not for a few. this is for 100%. and you see specials now on tv comparing california and texas, businesses moving out and delegations from california going to texas to try to figure out why businesses are moving and families are moving. it's not political at all. we make it political and we talk about it in political terms, but creating an environment where businesses can

thrive is an american idea and it's an idea that's working. and we see it all over the country, where some states are going down one road with higher taxes and bigger government and more spending, and they're losing to states like texas and i hope more and more like south carolina. they're moving to where they can thrive. and this benefits every american. we look at energy development and we talk about that at the national level of how it can create prosperity for our country if we open it up. we don't have to guess at whether or not it works. i mean, we can look at north dakota, you can look at pennsylvania. states that have gone around the federal rules and figured out how to develop their own energy are creating jobs and tax revenue to their governments.

they were able to lower their taxes, use the revenue to improve everything about their states. and here we make it political and partisan on whether or not our country can develop more and more energy. but at the state level it's just about what works. and all we have to do is look at what works. this is not rocket science. i came to washington as a novice in politics, believing in the power of ideas, seeing how ideas can revolutionize different industries, can create new products and services meeting the needs of customers everywhere. and that's what i hoped we could do here in washington. maybe naively i went to work in the house, often working with the heritage foundation to create a better product here in

washington. i saw social security, and not many people look below the surface, but we knew it was going broke. we knew we were taking in money that people were paying for this social security retirement benefit, but we were spending it all. and i thought, what an opportunity it would be for future generations, for my children, if we actually saved what people were putting into social security for their retirement. and you didn't have to do too much math to see that even for middle-class workers that americans could be millionaires when they retired if we even kept half of what was put into social security for them. it seemed like a good idea to create wealth and independence for individuals in retirement. but we made it a political idea and somehow convinced americans that it was riskier to save their social security contribution than it was just to spend it.

i'm leaving the senate to work on ideas that i know work. i've seen them work all over our country. we can look all over our country and showcase these ideas that are working. and i know that they're power and ideas. but i've learned one thing about the political environment. unless there's power behind the ideas, that they will not emerge here in the congress, that there's too much pressure from the outside on a status quo or to protect some political interest. and no matter how much we show that it's working, it won't be adopted here unless we're able to win the argument with the american people. i spent most of my life in research and advertising and marketing and strategic planning. what i hope i can do from this point is to take these ideas and policies that i know work, and the heritage foundation for

40 years has been creating policies and analysis that show these ideas work. and what i hope i can do is to help connect those ideas with real people, real faces, and to show these people that these ideas are not theory, they're not political policies, but they're ideas that are working right at their state or the state right next to them. and if we can win the arguments, if we can win the hearts and the minds of the american people with these ideas, i know that we can engage them and enlist them to convince all of you here to set the politics aside, the parties aside, and to adopt those ideas that work. my hope is to make conservative ideas so pervasive, so persuasive across the country, that politicians of all parties have to embrace those ideas to

be elected. >> i am not leaving here to be an advocate for the republican party. i hope that we can create more common ground between the political parties by showing everyone that ideas that work for their constituents and our constituents are right in front of our faces ago we are willing to set aside the pressure groups, the special interests, and just focus on what is working. over the next few years, we will see more and more states doing the right things, becoming more prosperous, creating a better environment for people to live and work, and we are going to see is some states that will continue to raise taxes, create more regulations, make it harder to start businesses, and to be profitable and in those states

-- they will continue to lose businesses, and many of those states will come to washington and ask us to help them out from their bad decisions. i hope that point we can show, by pointing at the states and at the right ideas, that we know the solutions at the state level, and we also know that we can change how we think that the federal level and make our country work a lot better. i leave here with a lot of respect for my colleagues. i know my democrat colleagues believe with conviction their ideas, and i know my republican colleagues do too. i hope we can look at the facts. i hope we can look at the real world. i hope we can look at what is working and set aside the politics and realize what really makes this country great and strong. it is when we moved dollars and decisions of washington, back to

people and communities and states. it works. not for to%, but for 100% of americans. -- 2%, but for 100% of americans. i believe everywhere we go, 100% of americans, these ideas can work for them to build a better future and a stronger america. i am not leaving the fight. i hope to raise my game at my next phase. i hope i can work more closely with all of you, as well as governors and state legislators, to take these ideas and convince americans, as well as their legislators, their senators, and there congressman, that we have the solutions all around us if we have the courage to adopt them. i thank you for this opportunity to serve. certainly, i will miss my relationships, but i hope we will have the opportunity to work together for what is the

greatest country in the world and what i believe a generation before us, it could be the greatest and most prosperous generation of all, if we just look to the ideas that work. thank you, madame president. i thank my colleagues. i yield the floor. >> republican kay bailey hutchinson is also retiring. she was elected to the u.s. senate in 1993. she served as vice-chairman of the public and conference -- republican conference. she gave her farewell address last week. it is half an hour. >> madame president, i am proud to just this chamber for possibly the last time as a

senator from the great state of texas. it is an ironic note that if i had given my farewell address last week, there would have been so much joy in the halls of the capitol, ringing with laughter and anticipation of our season's happiest time. but in one weekend, a sadness has set in with the news of a massacre of innocent children in newtown, connecticut. that was followed by the loss of our wonderful colleague, senator yue.el inoyoue.o i leave with a heavy heart just in the last few days. i want to thank the people of texas for asking me to represent them in washington. i want to thank the many people

who have served on my staff for almost 20 years. i have to say that i am touched that both the benches on both sides of this room are filled with my staff members who have been so hard-working and so loyal. they have produced so much in 20 years for our state and nation. i think them. -- thank them. want to thank my colleagues and everyone who has worked here and those who worship behind the scenes to make our lives as good -- who worked behind the scenes to make our lives as good as it could be. they keep our buildings safe and clean, they work in the library's, shops, effort serious, and guide tens of thousands of tourists there are nation's capital every year. i want to thank my husband and our two children.

many of my colleagues who were here when i started ringing my children as babies here have watched them grow up. the senate is not easy on families. they have sacrificed so i can serve the people of texas, and i am grateful for their patience and generosity. they have loved coming to the capital during these times. 11 years for the children and 20 for my husband. if i ask my children what they remember most about the visits to the capital, it is playing soccer in the russell building' s hallways in the evenings when the coast is clear. i would not be here today if it were not for my parents who gave me the gift of strong values and unwavering support and in

education that could be whatever i wanted it to be. my parents were surprised when they saw what i wanted to be. they never would have thought that their daughter growing up , would thinkas that she could be a u.s. senator. we had a wonderful public school system. i'm proud to say i'm a product of public education. the public schools in lamar were excellent. my university of texas law school prepared me to be what i could be. it has been a privilege to walk these halls in the capital of the world's gratis and long serving democracy. -- greatest and long serving moxie. --democracy.

we know exactly where we were in the minute we knew there was a terrorist attack on america. though we have suffered a horrific attack, the strength, resilience, and extraordinary acts of kindness of the american people showed the world that attempts to destroy our way of life would never succeed. on that day, no one could get in or out of washington. many communication networks were not operable. when the pentagon was hit and the capitol was evacuated, my staff and i walked to my home on capitol hill. the husband of my office manager work in a section of the pentagon that had been hit. we were on the one phone that we

had an call the hospitals, police, anyone that we thought might be able to tell us if he was safe. thankfully, he was fine. but there were so many who waited for hours and called hospitals to hear from their loved ones. sometimes the news was a relief and sometimes they waited in vain for good news. i have to say that it was an incredible moment when the senators who could find each other wherever they had gone from the capital, we finally gathered in the capitol police headquarters to talk to our leaders who had been taken to an undisclosed location. they said, we do not want anyone to come, but we are going to the steps of the capitol to hold a press

conference. we do not want anyone there because we do not know who is safe, but we want to tell the press that we are going to open for business tomorrow and do the nation's business, even though there was suspicion that the capital had been on the terrorist list of targets. every single one of the senators, i think there were 60 or 70, that had made it to the capitol police. they came to the capitol steps. after the press conference was held by the leaders, all of the several hundreds who had gathered, spontaneously broke out and saying god bless america. that was a time that said this is the strength of our country. we will not be defeated. as i exited the senate, i'm

aware that we are divided i jus as a legislative body and aa country. i do not think that we have different goals. we do have different ways of reaching them. congress suffers a great criticism. we may disagree politically and air our opposition in this chamber, it is a conversation i'm the saints that and defines our relationship -- it is the conversation that cements and defines our relationship. there has been intellect and hard from both sides of the aisle. i would like to thank my colleagues from both sides for the many wonderful years working together. we seconded one he neither at andne another at times

engage in great debate at others. the american people should should know that we are collegial. there will be differences in priorities, but in the senate, an adversary today will be an ally tomorrow. it is a rare occasion for ackerman it to turn -- acrimony to turn -- it is my hope that this ideology will not be lost. protecting the rights of the minorities make sure that every voice and every state is heard. that is as intended by our constitution. open amendments is what the for mgh the senate from the house -- is what differentiates the senate from the house. we shape the bills into shape for floor debate.

if they are not allowed to floor amendments, quality of the legislation suffers and mistakes are often made. let me give you some examples of how relationships can produce results. during the anthrax scare, a building was closed for a month. it made it very difficult, of course, for senators based there to do their work. diane feinstein's staff joined in my office is in the russell building. my chief of staff at gave them full access. one of the staff members commented on that. a republican office giving democrats free reign? but my chief of staff said, they have full access because we trusted them. senator feinstein and i have teamed up to pass legislation. the hutchison-feinstein commission studied the training

capabilities and costs of overseas military bases to determine their value compared to american bases. this resulted in consolidation and closures that brought thousands of troops back to benighted states -- to the united states were training was superior. we pass a breast cancer bill where voluntary purchases has raised millions of dollars for breast cancer research. that was senator feinstein's idea. we also took the amber alert ride. ding judge and nationwide -- we also took the amber alert nationwide. i remember when hillary clinton stop by with her chief of staff

to wish me happy birthday birthday the first year she was in the senate. it was a few months after she had arrived and my staff was surprised and possibly a bit starstruck to see the former first lady walked into the room. we went on to work together. we were dedicated to empowering women, leaders, and social entrepreneurs in emerging economies. we also teamed up with a couple of other senators to ensure public schools have the option to offer single-sex schools and classes. after i visited rod page, a young woman's leadership academy in the harlem area of new york city, one of the first and most successful pilot projects for girls public schools. i remember the time i invited

senator barbara to texas. we have worked together for so many years. we worked together on the appropriations committee for nasa. i wanted her to see the great work that they are doing their. -- there. then i took her to the houston rodeo. i want her to see the texas altculture. i'm not sure if she knew exactly how people would dress at the rodeo. suffice it to say, there were a lot of rhinestones and cowboy boots and day care and big cath. -- big hair and big hats. she said to me, if we were here

on monday and went to the chamber of commerce --these people look like -- uch.i said, yeah, pretty m we want to make sure that our stay at home moms and dads and the same opportunity for security savings as those who work outside of the home have. it has been a huge success. we also cosponsored the national breast and cervical cancer early protection program. she is a skilled legislator and a dear friend. senator jay rockefeller has been outstanding chairman of the commerce committee. we do not always agree, but we have worked hard to reach consensus and we have gotten things done. the faa bill started the

planning for the next generation of air traffic control. the highway bill, the nasa reauthorization that ensure that we would keep the focus on our space program has been instrumental in our national security and economic development with tremendous help from senator bill nelson, who is the only one among us today who has been into space. in a congress that has been marked by little progress, we have found a way forward. for some, that might not be something to take pride in. and we have served the american people at passing legislation that keeps the country running and i'm very proud of what we have been able to accomplish. our common security has been one of the most reductive in the whole of congress. i count him as a friend. maria cantwell and harry reid

and i have worked together to address the issues of our states. that rarity has been so important. leader mitch mcconnell has guided our party and conference through the past six years. he is a gifted leader and one that i have witnessed time and again has come up with strategies that have gotten things done in the right way. senator jon kyl and i have worked on immigration and get tax relief. senator alexander and i have champion the america competes act so we can continue the priority of scientific research and that we would never fail to invest in our future because it is the seed for our economy. i'm very pleased that a distinguishing member of a

committee and the dynamics committee -- and a finance committee now and the judiciary before is also on the floor. he has been a wonderful friend to me. he helped me in my very first election when he was a rock star at fundraisers in texas. i thank him for his long leadership in this body. i have had the wonderful good fortune to serve with two colleagues from my home state. first, senator phil gramm was a wonderful mentor and colleague. they broke the mold after senator graham. we always enjoyed our school rivalry. i have had a great relationship with my other texas senator who

will soon be the senior senator from texas, john. john, i am pleased to say we'll get the opportunity that i have had all of these years when people step up and introduce me as a senior citizen of texas. i'm happy to turn that mantle over to my colleague. and i'm very proud that he is going to be a deputy republican leader in the next congress. i know that he will be a steady hand at the wheel as we try to steer the ship in the right direction. he has proven time and time again that steady leadership is the one that rises to the top. i think you for being on the floor as well today. -- thank you for being on the floor as well. team texas, it is a spirit that holds our delegation together,

republicans and democrats. there are those in washington who think that texans are a little too loud and have a little too much fun, but i can assure you that team texas is good. it has been a long and wonderful 19 plus years. and i was urged elected in a special election in 1993, there were four people who flew up for my swearing in. it was a special election. those rowdy texans were so happy to watch my little swearing in ceremony. it was a great day for me, as well as my wonderful and loyal friends and supporters.

i started having weekly copies that year should -- coffees that year. there was one time every week that any texan who is here that wanted to see me could come and visit and was welcome. every thursday morning around 9 a.m. are 9:30 a.m., the person in charge was the wife of a three-star general who volunteered her time in our offices. i think it was as much her handling of the events as idea itself has led many other senators to take up this practice and get a chance to always visit with every constituent at least once a week. i want to thank clark for putting her stamp on our senate hospitality.

some of the most powerful moments of stay with me forever were spent with members of our military. visiting them across the world is one of the most moving of all experiences. i will never forget the first time in the early 1990s flying in in undercover c-130 that was disguised as a red cross delivery. i have to say that my good friend danny was on the trip with us. as was senator ted stevens. we flew in to see our troops in bosnia. but i went back to bosnia with our troops where we had the most beautiful easter sunrise service i had ever intended or will ever read it was in an open air

hangar with our service men women who were deployed there. for the first time, it was a texas guard unit that was in command of the base. it was the first time since the korean war that we had a hard unit in command of an operation overseas. they did a great job which led to many guard units from other states also taking command of bases and operations. i flew out of baghdad within the last few years and another c- 130 when there were no lights on the lane or on the runway because it was trying to make sure that there was not any clue to the enemy that maybe we were leaving when they were firing missiles around the airport or the times i have visited afghanistan were the

first time i visited with senator mccain, our troops were sleeping on cots. there are probably six or 700 cots in an old russian built aircraft hangar before anything had been brought in for living orders for our troops. all of their belongings were under their cots that was all they had for that first mission into afghanistan. madame president, i have always been one that has had such great respect and gratitude for our men and women in uniform. a put their lives on the line and pledged to give their all for our freedom. the power to wage war has been an enormous one. the weight of the responsibility should vest heavy on our shoulders. i leave this chamber around to have worked to assure our men and women in uniform have the

best training, equipment and the quality of life to do the job we are asking them to do. because of my deep respectful our armed verses, the first choice of committees when i came in 1993 was the armed services. i'm honored to be the first woman and 20 years to chair a sub committee on armed services. the woman before me with margaret chase. as the only woman to chair the senate republican policy committee, i was pleased to be a part of republican leadership for many years. again, the first since margaret chase. when i was first running for office, i said i wanted to make things better for our sons and daughters. i leave the senate knowing that january will see the greatest number of female senators in our nation owes the history. -- nation's history.

madam president, it is no secret that texans have a particular sense of pride. i'm no exception. i have deep texas roots. the senate seat that i hold in my life belonged to thomas jefferson, the great, great, great, and other great friend. they both signed the declaration of independence. that history reminds me everyday that we must protect the freedoms that so many of our ancestors fought for. the houston line is a outline to. -- too. the secretary of war of the texas army when he fought for independence. it is fitting that those two -- the first to win our

state became a state. each summer i take a week to tour one part of texas on the bus. it has been so much fun. after we did the el camino real, he passed a bill to designate a national historic trail. we went from the queasy and i bordered to the mexican border -- we went from the louisiana border to mexican border. favoritestate staff does h part. i am pleased to have had the opportunity and the pleasure to visit all 254 counties in texas. i have met texans from all walks of life who have opened their homes and businesses and shared their stories.

madame president, i will be sad to leave. it is time. i believe strongly that we should keep the life blood of congress - pumping. we need new legislators with new ideas and fresh perspective after every election. i believe that new generation should invigorate congress, i also want to say a few words of praise for experience. knowing the history of an issue is essential to monitor progress. knowing what an agency should be doing and what was put into law and why allows for better oversight. the expertise of our longer serving members is an essential part of good governance. i hope that some of the are your these -- and some of the priorities will continue.

encouraging more young people to study technology, engineering, and math. make sure that we are bringing those young minds with the creativity and engineering backgrounds to create the economies for the future is so important. that has been the lifeblood of our economy. saving the man for space exploration program and ensuring the long-term future of nasa is essential for our economy. ensuring that stay-at-home moms and dads who work hard and raising children children and contributing to the communities have spousal ira's for retirement. those are just a few of the things that i hope will intended to be championed as i leave. it has been an honor to serve in the u.s. senate.

i leave with the hope that the values that built america into the and greatest nation on earth will be protected so that future generations will have the same art or two navies that we have had -- will have the same opportunities that we have had. we have sacrificed so much to ensure that we do. thank you, madam president. >> senator elect ted cuz will be replacing senator hutchinson. in early november, a kansas senator has been appointed vice chairman of it committee. -- of a committee. the idea was promoted in

certain articles. i think it was an inflation of politics. the person who created the show is a public conservative. there was no agenda. they idea that there was an agenda was a charge that was the put forward. that was absurd. it is absurd. that is not to say that if there was an issue, if our content was affecting the behavior of interrogators in the field, even if it was .05% taking their cues from jack, it was a systemic problem. i suggest that we intervene on behalf of those people. to disabuse them of the fact

that this is a tv show. it is a tv show. the fact that "24" became the political football for a while was a very valuable thing. >> monday night at 8 p.m. on c- span, how movies and tv show affect policies. and at 10:15 p.m., singer and song writer, james taylor. host: stephen dinan is politics editor with the washington times and he is here to talk to us about the fiscal cliff. what's next? so let's get to it. on friday you had the lead story with the headline boehner's plan fails to win over g.o.p. the collapse is a serious blow to house speaker john boehner who hoped to gain leverage in

his discussion with president obama and signals conservative republicans are unwilling to stomach any rise in tax rates even on those making more than $1 million which was mr. boehner's plan. so walk us through what happened on friday. how did we get there? and it seems like the speaker of the house didn't see this coming, and a lot of folks in washington want to know why not? guest: we begin the week with the speaker of the house saying negotiations between he and president obama had stalled. they were stuck on their -- i guess i would say maybe not their final offers but current offers. boehner said he would raise taxes on those making a million a year or more and get all told $1 trillion in tax increases which he wanted to be matched with $1 trillion in spending cuts and the rate increases on

those making $1 million or more and remove loopholes and deductions to get the rest in revenue and then you had your spending cuts. the president, sort of depends on how you do your math and counting, but the president -- by scoreible math the president would have been at $1.3 trillion in tax increases and $900 billion in spending cuts and the president wanted rate increases on everybody making $400,000 or more a year. so that's where the sides were. boehner looked at that and said we're not going to bridge this and turned to what he called his plan b earlier this week which was just to say the one thing we don't want to do. we'll take care of the tax increases. we want to get those off the table so he put a plan on the house familiar that would have just done would have extended all the -- it's complex. would have extended all the marshall tax rate cuts for those

making under $1 million and passed the m. apt t. and those-- amt and those both would have been permanent. a 10-year score and would have taken care of that in perp thank youty and allowed the rates on those making $1 million or more to rise and realized he was probably not going to have enough support and added another sequester, the spending cuts looming. he added in something to replace those with cuts to health care and some of the other president's agenda and put them both on the floor. the spending cuts, the sequester passed but then realized he didn't have the votes to pass the tax part and pulled the bill from the floor late and plan b collapses and yesterday came out and said ok, i tried, i failed. now it's up to president obama and harry reid to come one their plan and send us something and then we'll work on it. host: why did the plan b fai?

guest: in short because it involved tax rate increases and in effect would have led to tax rate increases. boehner args the vote itself was to extend tax cuts that there's nothing in the bill, nobody was actually voting for tax rate increases but the effect is it would have been a tax rate increase and enough conservative republicans in the house said i made a pledge not to raise taxes and this is a tax increase because by not doing anything the voters will see the tax increase so enough to have them said we won't go with you that he knew he simply wouldn't have support. it was dozens and so he was not going to get any democratic support for it, so he had toful bill. -- so he had to pull the bill. host: and talk about arm- twisting. is it these people came to him and said there's no way we're going to vote for it or did he do a head count and just say, i won't have enough votes to pass

my bill? guest: a little bit of both. i was outside while they were huddling essentially. he realized where it was. earlier that day he and house majority leader eric cantor under no uncertain terms told leaders, we have the votes and certainly bluffing and so that is the sort of thing that backfires so to have been so adamant that they had the votes and then didn't will hurt them particular if boehner goes to obama and says, hey, i can make a deal, obama will say you said before you could and couldn't. so how can i trust you?there are

a lot of repercussions. host: we're talking with stephen dinan from the "washington times politics.? about the fiscal cliff, the numbers are on the screen. before going to the phones we want to show you a little bit about what speaker boehner had to say yesterday in his explanation as to why plan b legislation was pulled from the house vote. and he also added that he didn't think the members' refusal to vote on it was aimed at him personally. [video clip] >> there was a perception that the vote last night was going to increase taxes. i disagree with the characterization of that by, but it was out there and we had a number of our members who just didn't want to be perceived as having raised taxes. that was the real issue. you've all heard me say this and

i've told my colleague this, you do the right things every day for the right reasons, the right things will happen. while we were not able to get the votes and avert 98.1% of the tax increases, i don't think -- they were not taking that out on me. they were dealing with the perception that somebody might accuse them of raising taxes. host: stephen dinan of the washington times, were the conservatives taking it out on the speaker? he had made decisions earlier this year that upset some of them. took some of the conservative republicans off their various committees. was this a little bit of payback? guest: maybe a little. but the speaker, one of the things he said repeatedly in the press conference was this was a message on spending.

he took from this and i think it's probably a fair message to take out of this, his republicans don't think it's the problem of the government taking too little revenue, they think the government is spending too much so that's why they weren't going to vote for a tax increase thursdays night. they wanted to vote for more spending cuts and see a spending cuts plan out of the white house. so that was -- boehner walked out and had to have been at least a half dozen times saying our president has a spending problem and we need a spending cut conclusion. -- seclusion. -- solution. i think it was a message to the president, if you want a deal you just saw where my caucus is thanks to the fact that i couldn't get through even this tax increase, unless you put a lot more spending cuts on the table. i don't think he can do that but that's the message boehner was sending. host: charles in bosier city, louisiana, you're on the washington journal with stephen dinan of the washington times.

caller: merry christmas to y'all. first comment, i just want to know if we're going to get our social security increased. my second comment, and please let me finish on this point. there's a bill in the senate to give the folks of new jersey and new york a $60 billion in cast in disaster relief. i want the people of new york and new jersey to get every penny they need. but this country is broke. mr. coast, the senator from louisiana has brought a billiton -- a bill to the floor. he is a republican -- say hey, wait just a minute let's give you about $17 billion and then all this pork that's in this bill. it is loaded down with pork right now. loaded.

harry reid put all kinds of pork in it. like i say, give them the $17 billion and then in about 90 days, come back and see what else the folks need in that area. but i don't believe -- if one republican votes for that $60 billion, every one of them ought to be thrown out for treason in the republican party. host: this is the headline in this morning's "new york times.? hurricane relief bill moves towards passage in the senate. a $60.4 billion to pay for recovery efforts in the states pummeled by hurricane sandy took a major step towards passage. is this the kind of spending conservative house republicans are talking about? guest: yes. it's interesting. you've seen the senate. the article stays senate moved towards this passage and it will probably happen next week when they return from their christmas

break, the house has made absolutely no movement to put this on the floor and will most certainly be pushed into next year which means the bill will die and they will have to reintroduce the bill and go through some of the same procedure since you will have new senators here in the chamber. it's exactly right. the caller said exactly the discussion going on in the republican conference. he mentioned senator coats. i believe there's a list of 21 amendments they will go through before they pass the bill and i think the coats is one of those the caller will see the senators get a chance to vote on that. senator coburn will have four or five spending cuts to go through so the senate is going to have a lot of debate on that but there's definitely enough support for the bill to get through in the end whatever the the question is how much of that

money should be emergency spending or how much is emergency spending that needs to be spent right now and how much can be pushed back for years. host: on our democrats line, lisa. caller: i'm a resident and live. my promise financially, i am not working. i cannot have -- in my house that the time. my grandson is going to school. i could not celebrate christmas for me and my husband. my husband is going to school and working graveyard shift. and financially and mentally we are suffering very hard. mentally, physically, emotionally. i don't think it's fair about obama. i agreed with obama. i feel that -- i can't name the other -- the other guy going against obama.

i feel that he needs to agree with obama, because he is looking out for the people that cannot do for themselves. host: a president was touring the country and telling people to talk to their congressman. during the president's break for however long it will be come on do expect to see a lot of republicans, especially the conservative republicans going out and try to counter the president? they say it is not about the taxes, but the spending. guest: i think everyone was exhausted about everything that happened here. the action want a real christmas break. and're out and about

listening to see whether or not they have the upper hand. there are a couple of things going on. the president got his highest approval rating this last week since 2009. it seems to coincide with the sandy hook elementary school as a response to that. the president is riding very high in terms of where people see him. he has convinced them that the policies are right. he comes in with a lot of leverage. the key question for republican s is how much political damage they have suffered? who is to blame if they go over the cliff? somebody going over the clip would be better than the deal they are getting from our obama. there are also some democrats who think it would be good to go over the cliff.

both sides are angling over what would be a better starting point for the th conversation next ye. host: back to the phones. sandy, you're on washington journal. caller: hi. i've never been able to get in through before. host: congratulations on your persistence. guest: i have to say that i believe the republican congress is not going to do anything. look at the past two years. they have not done a thing. when they say they are concerned about jobs and spending, they have not done one thing to basically do anything about it.

not job acts of infrastructure bill. nothing. i read an article by a man whose name is rex on the market watch a couple of days ago. his commentary is about two point $6 trillion that could be saved without touching savings -- $2.6 trillion dollars that could be saved without touching savings ra. he especially talks about corporate welfare tax. host: stephen dinan. guest: i would say that republicans have been focused on spending cuts. they have asked a number of bills to do that. including the successful part of their plan b.

it is today have not been eager to pass the president does he stimulus plan. the republicans want to go in the other direction. i think it is safe to say that both sides of the building right behind us right now has been calcified. i keep what i call the legislative utility index. it is a measure that looks at the number of hours spent in session and the number of pages of the congressional vote taken and the number of bill passed the elites chamber. -- through each member. the house is in the middle of the pact in terms of activity. the senate is the worst on record. the senate last year was the worst on record. 2012 is the second worst on record. that is because the senate is run by democrats and is not controlled by democrats as of

the filibuster issue. the point being is that i do not think you can say it is when the party's fault. both parties have left the congress calcified. host: the lead story in this morning's "wall street journal" on how cliff talks have hit the wall. the house ways and means chair says the broader plan called for was too hi. paul ryan said he could not sign on because it did not make structural changes in entitlements. are camp and ryan two guys that are bucking the speaker? does boehner have to woo these guys over? here is the issue.

boehner is a dealmaker. he wants to get deals done. the problem in this case is that he rented a blow ahead of where the house republicans were. -- he ran too far ahead of where the house republicans were. he was too far ahead of the pack. what happened with plan b is that they were pulling the leash and saying that he need to be .skback where they were what you are saying are the two big objections. if we're going to do this deal, we need to see real reforms in entitlement. that is the one sort of issue that president obama has put on the table, which is potential limits to future social security costs living increases.

camp is talking about the tax rate is not the way to go about doing this. what you are looking at here is these guys saying that they are ready for a big and broad deal as long as it tackles everything. neither boehner or obama has been talking about a big and broad deal that just the tax rates and entitlements. they are talking about getting past where they are in the fiscal cliff. host: we're talking with stephen dinan and the fiscal cliff and what is next. he is the politics editor at the washington times. our next call comes from tennessee. go ahead. caller: misty for taking my call and merry christmas to everyone out there. -- thank you for taking my call and merry christmas to everyone out there. this president over the last

four years, every year he has spent $1.2 trillion per year more than we take in. he spent about 4.6 trillion every year. of course he still wants to spend more money. more. what we need is more cuts in programs. we need about 4.6 chilean dollars in cuts to programs. -- $4.6 trillion dollars in cuts to programs. he did not have a hard time getting reelected, but i think we made a mistake electing this guy. guest: the caller has a lot of

good numbers. he is correct on a lot of them. the spending numbers are -- and these are rough -- about $2.3 trillion in revenue. his point is correct. the problem is you have the government taking in about 15% of gross to must the product in tax increases and spending between 23% or 24% of gdp in spending. that is a reason you have trillion dollar deficit. we are borrowing $.40 of every dollar that we spent. i mentioned the gdp figures. the historic average is that the government takes an 18% of gdp and spends 20% of gdp in spending. about 2% is a manageable

deficit. the problem over the past three years is that we are at 60% and 24%. that gap is too big. at what level do you set the tax rate and what level do you have the spending rates? taxing a 24% will probably never happen. the question is, where is that middle ground do you end up? the bowles-simpson commission had 21%. members of congress have insisted that it does not go higher than 18%. that is the fight that will play out over the next couple of years. how much do we tax? how much are we paying for it? host: we want to remind our viewers and listeners of the consequences of going off of the

fiscal cliff. in terms of the tax increases, it would mean another $221 billion. .he bush tax cuts expiring i payroll tax relief would expire and raise another $95 billion. i dish the provisions expire -- additional provisions expire for $65 million. the new affordable care act taxes would raise $18 billion. $65 billion in spending cuts for the budget control act, otherwise known as sequestration. $26 billion in emergency unemployment benefits would expire. $11 billion for medicare physician payment cuts.

this is also according to reuters. back to the phones. jim from michigan on the line for democrats. how are you? caller: i'm great. host: where is your city in michigan? guest: near notre dame. caller: i have a comment on your previous caller. one of the impressions you get is as if our spending started with obama, the out-of-control spending. that was in place with bush. obama inherited it. we have two wars in iraq and afghanistan. a believer that it seems as

if we have no choice did let the fiscal cliff happen. there is no way we can get our spending under control. guest: that is a growing sentiment for a ton of folks on capitol hill, especially among conservative republicans. they do not want that fiscal cliff. there are a number that are angry over the cuts that would come from defense. there is growing sentiment among some of them that if you go over the cliff, you look at the first real dollar to dollar ager spending cuts in a generation. some of them are eager about that. not necessarily a public thing, but they are talking amongst themselves. is this the worst thing if we go over it? some are looking at the same situation with tax rate. it is not the worst thing if we can suddenly raise our are sent to joe tax rates -- of tax

rates. the center is boehner and obama and the other leadership posts there publicly saying no, no. you cannot go over this. we should stop this. host: barbara from texas. caller: thank you for taking my call this morning. merry christmas. i have been listening to c-span a lot. i have got some comments and one question. i do believe that we need to go over a physical cliff. doing a deal at the end of the year is getting old because everything is rushed. we need to sit back and go over the cliff and let these guys see

if they cannot work out a deal. so far they have not been able to do it for the last four years. i do believe that we need to stay at 18% to 20% gdp. as far as cuts, we have never really gotten the cuts that we were supposed to. that is like a sequester. that was passed in 2011. they are still working on it. most of the cuts are based on the increases that are built in due to baseline. when we do cuts, we need to go back to a zero baseline. caller: their collars are incredibly well-informed about this. it is great to hear. -- your collars are incredibly well-informed about this. it is great to hear. her numbers aral